


Office Space

by catsaremyboyfriend



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: F/M, I Don't Even Watch The Show I Just Love Deathstroke, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-10
Updated: 2014-10-09
Packaged: 2018-02-16 20:24:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,832
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2283393
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catsaremyboyfriend/pseuds/catsaremyboyfriend
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Mostly I have my characters snuggle, it makes me happy. There are no sad endings here.</p>
          </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Felicity _likes_ staying late at the office. It’s quiet and people don’t come around asking stupid questions like, ‘I just downloaded a bunch of sketchy programs and now I have a virus,’ or, ‘How can I get past the company firewall,’ cause she knows they’re just gonna use that for porn.  
Also, at night, she can work on stuff for Oliver without worrying about anyone catching her. Right now, though, she’s on the fiftieth level of a riveting game of Tetris, which, everyone likes Tetris, okay? It’s not her fault she’s addicted.  
“Fuck yeah,” she mutters to herself, finally getting to level fifty one. She leans back in her chair, rubbing a thumb over her soulmark, an old habit. She was born with her soulmark, a few words on her right index finger in handwriting so neat it almost looks typed.  
To be honest, her soulmark has always concerned her. For one thing, it’s got two whole curse words in it, and the tone isn’t exactly…positive. But hey, if they turn out to be nasty or something, she still has friends and family. Not everyone is destined to stay with their soulmate, anyway.  
She sighs and taps her fingers against her desk, thinking that she should _really_ get back to work. Oliver wants info on some Albanian gangsters who have been moving in on Starling City lately. There’s a noise behind her, almost too soft to be heard, and hair rises on the back of her neck.  
She turns, and it’s fucking _Deathstroke_ , the guy who’s been hunting Oliver for the past couple of months. Shit. _Shit_. She says the first words that come to mind. “If you get blood on my computer, I will come back from the dead and snap your neck with my newfound ghost powers.” 

He pauses with a hand to one of his swords, head tilting. She waits with her heart in her throat, and is this a bad guy thing, to stand there, just watching, until she can’t breathe and her eyes are watering. “Well, I’ll be fucking damned.” 

_Shit_. Now the tears are really starting to spill, because she’s both really happy, cause _soulmate_ , and still really scared, because bad guy with sword, but also _soulmate_.  
She’s only heard of a few people who purposely killed their soulmates, and she’s _really_ hoping that’s not gonna happen here. Oliver was friends with him once, there’s gotta be something good in there, hidden under the layers of people he’s killed.  
She’s crying _harder_ now, damnit, and Felicity knows she’s an ugly crier, even her mom says so. Deathstroke takes a hesitant step forward, peeling off the mask. Underneath he’s handsome, and he has an eye patch. He’s also quite a bit older than her, and he looks concerned. 

“I’m pretty sure you, you’re here to kill me,” she stammers, wiping at her eyes, cause if she’s gotta die, she’s _not_ going to die crying. He reaches out a hand and touches her cheek, thumb stroking away the tears. She leans into his touch instinctively.

“No. I wasn’t here to kill you.” He has an accent, and this is the guy who’s been terrorizing them for months, but she raises her hands to the one on her face, tangles his fingers in hers. He gives her a crooked smile. “You’re very beautiful.” 

“You’re very, uh, muscely.” He grins and steps closer, so their knees are touching. He smells like gun oil and pine. 

“Thank you. Please stop crying. I realize that I’m probably not your ideal soulmate, but we must make the best of what we have.” She sniffs and presses a kiss to his knuckles, not really thinking about it.

“It’s fine. Just stop trying to kill my friends, and it’ll be fine.”

“I’ll think about it.” He’s straight faced, and she’s going to have to rethink her whole _life_. This is such a mess, but he’s still got his hand in hers, which is a good sign. 

“So, uh, platonic, or, um…” 

“I won’t be able to keep my hands off you,” he says, shrugging, moving her so she’s sitting on her desk, his hips between her knees. 

“I’m gonna need time to process this.”

“Mhm.” He presses a quick kiss to her lips, almost chaste, and steps away, slipping the mask back on. “Don’t tell Queen about this.”

“Oh my God, of course not!”

“I’ll see you in a few weeks.” 

“How…you already know everything about me, don’t you?” He nods and leaves. She sits with a shaky breath, deciding that tonight is a ‘no emotions, only hacking’ kind of night.

 

When she gets home, there’s a bottle of wine on her dining room table and a note, in the same neat handwriting as on her finger.  
 _In case you need to forget about me_.  
It’s good wine. She leaves a glass of it on her fire escape, and it’s gone by the morning, politely washed out and left on her counter. She rubs at her soulmark and smiles. Next time she sees him, things will go better.


	2. Office Space

In and out. That’s all he’s here for. Check out Queen’s business, find all the exits, security points, and main areas of traffic. There shouldn’t be anyone here. It’s almost one in the morning, for Christ’s sake.   
So when he drops out of a ceiling panel and sees a woman sitting there, typing away, he’s a little surprised. He can’t see her face, just a long fall of blonde hair.   
He’s not going to kill her, he’ll just get out without her hearing him, but his movement causes a piece of paper to slide to the floor and she stiffens. Damnit. Then she turns around, and _damnit_. It’s one of Queen’s friends, Felicity.   
Her eyes widen, and she pushes back in her chair. He’s going to have to kill her, which is too bad. She’s a lovely thing, especially with the glasses.

He’s got a hand to his sword when she says, “If you get blood on my computer, I will come back from the dead and snap your neck with my newfound ghost powers.”  
He pauses. His words. This snip of a thing just said his words. Queen’s little girlfriend just said his _words_. This is going to change a lot. He starts thinking of how to get revenge without making her miserable when he realizes that her breathing is shallow and there are tears in her eyes. Fuck.

“Well, I’ll be fucking damned,” he says instead of asking how she feels about vengeful murder sprees, which, considering she joined Queen’s team, she’s probably okay with them. Goddamn, this is a mess. Now she’s crying, just sitting there staring at him while tears fall down her face.  
He remembers he was twenty when his soulmark came in, wrapped around his thigh. He remembers the sly winks and teasing, because he has a soulmate who’s so much younger.   
He takes a step forward without really thinking and takes off the mask. It’ll be easier for her if she can see his face. This isn’t exactly his ideal way of meeting his soulmate, with her crying as soon as he speaks to her, but he’ll take what he can get.   
Out of all of Queen’s friends, he knows the least about her. Whip smart, good with computers, likes red wine, has a tendency to run her mouth off, Jewish, looks good in a pair of heels. She never seemed very important before, just tech support.   
She visibly composes herself, wiping at the tears on her face, and stares straight at him. The girl’s got spunk.

“I’m pretty sure you, you’re here to kill me,” she says, and she’s so _young_ , how did a grizzled old soldier like him get marked by someone so young and beautiful? He touches the apple of her cheek, the skin there so soft, and is pleased when she leans into his touch. 

“No. I wasn’t here to kill you,” he says, because he wasn’t, not really, and killing her wouldn’t have made him happy even if she wasn’t his soulmate. He’s started to hate killing in general, feels like it’s the only thing he’s good for.  
He’s pleasantly surprised when she lifts both hands to his and tangles their fingers together. Her nails are painted dark green, the color of Queen’s hood, and he truly hopes that’s a coincidence. He smiles to comfort her, says what he’s been thinking since he saw her face. “You’re very beautiful.” 

She colors wonderfully, skin warming under his touch. “You’re very, uh, muscely.” He grins and steps closer, looking down at the top of her head.   
Their legs brush. She’s wearing a skirt, and he wishes he could peel those tights down her thighs, open her up for him. It’s going to be hard to focus around her. 

“Thank you. Please stop crying. I realize that I’m probably not your ideal soulmate, but we must make the best of what we have.” He’s not going to be the kind of person who ruins their soulmate’s life, he’s _not_ , they’ll make this work somehow. She sniffs once and kisses his knuckles, mouth soft. 

“It’s fine. Just stop trying to kill my friends, and it’ll be fine.” All his plans for the future have gone out the window, he can’t destroy Queen and have her, and he doesn’t think she’s the kind of person to switch sides. 

“I’ll think about it,” he says, keeping his face set because of _course_ he’ll have to stop everything, Jesus. 

“So, uh, platonic, or, um…” His attention returns to her immediately, and he almost laughs, because she’s sitting there, holding his hand, having just learned that her soulmate is one of the deadliest men on the planet, and she’s trying to flesh out their goddamn relationship. 

“I won’t be able to keep my hands off you,” he says, lifting her to her desk so he can step between her legs. She’s barely a weight in his hands, and it’s times like these that he loves the serum. 

“I’m gonna need time to process this.” 

So is he.

“Mhm.” He kisses her quick, just a brush of mouths, and she tastes like strawberries. Stepping away from her is almost physically painful, and he puts the mask back on so she can’t see it on his face. “Don’t tell Queen about this.” 

He can’t wait to see the look on the man’s face, if he’s honest with himself. She shakes her head several times. “Oh my God, of course not!”

 

Smart of her.

“I’ll see you in a few weeks.” That should be enough time for both of them to figure their lives out, and it’s not like he can’t watch her from a distance. She doesn’t have to know. 

“How…you already know everything about me, don’t you?” She’s almost laughing to herself, and he’s impressed by how well she’s handling this. He nods, because it’s true, it would be stupid of him if he didn’t, and leaves.

 

He breaks into a wine shop, one of the nice ones, and grabs the first bottle of red that he sees. It can’t hurt to give her nice things. He leaves it on her kitchen table along with a note, waits for her to come home.   
It’s three when she finally walks in the door, looking exhausted. She pauses in the kitchen, stares at the bottle for a few seconds, reads the note, then sits with her head in her hands. She drinks a glass of it, goes to bed looking a bit happier.  
She leaves a glass of it on her fire escape, glancing furtively around, so he drinks it, toasts to her in his head. It’s not difficult for him to get into her apartment and wash the glass out while she sleeps. He leaves thinking of her, and how everything is going to change now.


	3. Sleep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mostly I have my characters snuggle, it makes me happy. There are no sad endings here.

He waits three weeks. Three weeks and he thinks of her every day, how she’ll taste, what it’ll be like to make her smile, and he _hates_ these thoughts. He’s not some fucking kid anymore, to fall in puppy love, but every time he thinks of her, he grins to himself.   
He’s backed off from Queen, decided that he’ll stay around, for her, but won’t bother the man anymore. He’s got a soulmate now, what else can he do? He’s started to get bored with killing, anyway. There’s so much blood on his hands, gallons of it, sticky and hot, dripping to his wrists. He knows Felicity’s not his savior, he’s no fool, but for a _soulmate_ , for a soulmate, he can be…not good, but a better man.

 

She comes home at four in the morning to find Slade Wilson on her goddamn couch. His head is thrown back, arms stretched over the back of the couch, eyes closed, but she knows he’s aware. People like him always are. She thought Oliver was asleep once, went to touch him. He almost broke her arm before he realized who it was.  
She puts her bag down, slips off her shoes, not trying to hide the noise. Intentional silence is always the loudest. Also, she’s not exactly good at stealth. “Uh. Hey. So, sneaking into my apartment is…so creepy. But Oliver does it all the time, which I guess means I’ll have to get used to it.”

His head comes forward as he nods, eyes opening. “Hey,” he rumbles, all raspy, and _okay_ , that’s a turn on. 

“Hey.” She settles carefully next to him, their thighs touching. He’s not wearing the armor, thank God. That would just be uncomfortable. “Oliver says you haven’t been around lately.”

“Is he happy about that?”

“God, yeah, of course.” When he stays silent she gets worried, stands up with quick, jerky movements. “So, uh, cocoa, I’m gonna get cocoa. Cocoa’s good, right?” 

He sighs and grabs the back of her skirt, pulls her into his lap. “Goddamnit, Felicity. I’m not going to cut your throat. Calm down.”

She settles against his chest, tucks her head into his neck. His heartbeat is steady and slow. “Alright. Alright. But I really do want cocoa.” She gets off his lap and heads for the kitchen, calling, “You can stay where you are, this won’t take me long.” 

He gets up and follows her anyway, to lean against the door to the kitchen and watch her. She becomes very aware of every movement. “Tell me about your day.” 

She looks over her shoulder at him, hands busy heating up water. “Really? Uh, I had work most of the day, it’s just tech stuff, but this one chick, she’s always going on these roleplaying sites that give her viruses and I keep _telling_ her that if she’s so desperate for online friends she should try Facebook, but…” She stops when she sees him smirking at her. “Yeah, I know, I have a tendency to babble.” 

“I don’t mind. Fills up the silence. Plus, you’re cute when you’re rambling.” 

She feels the back of her neck flush hot and turns to him with two mugs. “Uh, um, here?” He grins and takes them both from her. “They’re hot, so don’t drink right…away.”   
He’s taking huge drinks, looking her in the eye like it’s a challenge to see who can burn their tongue faster. She laughs and slides past him. “I was actually gonna go to sleep, but if you want to talk, I’ll rustle up some coffee.” 

He follows her into the living room, sitting close so she can put her legs across his lap. “No. It’s fine. I’ll leave when you’re asleep.” She throws him a grateful smile and leaves to change into pajamas.

 

The whole apartment smells like her. Strawberries. He can hear her moving around, getting changed. The cocoa’s not bad, and if he feels a little childish drinking it, it’s not like he can drink whiskey all the time. She comes back in shorts and a sweatshirt with M.I.T across the front. 

“I thought we could watch TV?” 

“Sure.” He’s behind on TV. Being stuck on an Island will do that to you. She turns on some show about parks and leans into him, her back against his right side. He laughs at the show a few times, but he likes his humor dark, and she’s distracting.   
He’s not a teenager, to get a hard on every time she shows some skin, but she smells good and she’s warm. Eventually her breathing slows and she melts into him. He turns off the TV and carries her to bed, leaves a card with his number on her pillow.


	4. Highway

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I also always finish my stories. I've actually started to watch Arrow now, and it's. so. good. Yay superheroes and their tendency to be shirtless.

He receives a text from her the next day. 

_hi_

He’s not good at texting, missed it by more than a few years. Her generation is the tech one. 

_Hello._

_i’m kinda surprised. i didn’t expect you to be into the texting thing_

_I am not._

 

It’s radio silence for the rest of the day, until evening. He’s sitting on a bench in a dog park. He’s always liked dogs. Loyal. Easy. His phone rings, some loud clicking noise he chose off a list. It’s her, of course. 

“Hey there.” 

“Where are you?” she asks hurriedly. He immediately tenses. 

“Park bench at Henley. Why?” 

Her sigh is long and heartfelt. “Look, I know I’ve only really known you for a few days-”

“You’re my soulmate, Felicity. You can have anything.”

There’s a long pause where he fears he’s said too much, exposed how much this means to him. “Oh my God, you are the best,” she blurts out finally, a smile in her voice.

He can’t help but grin in return, and he feels like he’s seventeen again. “What do you need?” 

“My car broke down a few miles outside the city, and well, no one else can pick me up and pollen does not do wonders for my health and also it’s gonna be dark soon, and…” 

“Felicity. I’ll be there. Twenty minutes.”

She takes a deep breath. “Thanks. Thank you.”

“I’ll be right there.” 

 

She’s sitting on a small hill by the side of the road, hugging her knees. She sits up straight when he pulls up, loosens when she sees his face. She motions for him to sit, and they’re along a quiet road, so he does. 

“Hello.” 

“Hey. Thanks for coming to get me.”

“I always will.”

She glances up, then smiles, tucking a long strand of hair behind her ear. “I…Thank you.”

He sees the string of letters along her finger, takes her hand. “Your words. May I see?”

“Yeah, of course.” Her fingernails are painted red and black today. He hopes they’re for him. He traces a finger along her words and she shivers. He wants to kiss her, badly, so he does. Cups her jaw with one hand and turns her face to his.  
She opens for him, wraps a hand around the back of his neck. He bites down on her bottom lip and she makes a needy noise, throwing a leg over his hips. He puts his hands on her waist, slips his thumbs under her shirt to stroke the skin there.  
She sucks on his tongue before pulling back with a hand on his chest. Her mouth is already swollen and he tightens his fingers without thinking. She rolls her hips into his and he grits his teeth. 

“ _Jesus_.” She leans forward so he gets a faceful of strawberry scented hair that he tugs aside to bite at her neck. He leaves marks on things that belong to him, he’s not ashamed of it. “Felicity, sweetheart, we’re on the side of a public road,” he says finally, when she’s making tiny pleased noises and grinding against his hip.

“ _No_ ,” she sighs, long and drawn out. He grins to himself. He’s still got it. 

“Honey, come on.” He twists so he’s sitting up with her on his lap. All these pet names, he’s never been soft like this, but they just roll off his fucking tongue and she responds beautifully. She pulls back and runs a hand through his hair, scratching at the nape of his neck. 

“Yeah. I don’t want anyone coming.” She flushes. “I mean, a car, not…you and I, I...that could happen later, um.” He laughs and kisses her hard, wrapping a hand in the hair at the base of her neck. 

“We’ll go home in a little bit,” he murmurs, running his hands up her thighs.

 

They neck like teenagers for an hour, until he tickles her and she laughs delightedly into his mouth. He grins in return and taps the end of her nose. “I didn’t expect this,” she says, sitting up to brush grass off her knees.

“Expect what?” 

“For you to be fun. I kinda thought you’d be…really intense and extreme man pain all the time, like Oliver. I mean, I love the guy, but he broods so _much_.”

He doesn’t tell her about the fights he starts when everything gets to be too much, about the tattered picture of his son that he keeps in his wallet, and the nights he drinks himself to sleep. They can be serious later.

“Yeah, I can be fun.”

It’s dark out now, the stars almost visible this far from the light pollution of the city. The only good thing about the Island were the stars. She leans into him and he tells her about them, and if his voice cracks, she doesn’t say anything. 

 

On the way home she falls asleep, curls into herself like she’s used to sleeping in small places. He wonders how often she falls asleep in Arrow Cave. It can’t be comfortable down there. She’s a light weight in his hands as he carries her upstairs, picks the lock to her apartment.  
She wakes up enough to blearily change into pajamas and kiss his cheek, saying, “Thanks,” as he pulls a blanket over her shoulders. He kisses her forehead and leaves.


	5. Apartment

She wakes up and he’s gone. Her first instinct is to call him. 

“’Lo?” he says when he picks up, sleepy. 

“You know, I kinda just….called you and didn’t think of why.”

He laughs low. “S’alright. I’ve slept long enough.” She curls up on her side and smiles. 

“So, when am I going to see you again?” 

“Any time. I don’t have much to do, now that…well.” 

“You’re going to stay in Starling, right?” she asks anxiously.

“Yes.” 

“Good. That’s…good, really good.” He laughs again. “Look, I have a few days off, and Oliver promised that he and Digg could take care of everything, so…” 

“I’ll be there in ten.”

 

Felicity doesn’t know what to wear for once, what do you wear to hang out in your apartment with your mercenary soulmate? Her hair is a mess and she’s only wearing a long t-shirt and her makeup’s not _done_ and…there’s a knock at her window. Okay. Okay. She takes a deep breath and grabs a gun, cause it can’t hurt to be careful. It’s just Oliver, which is…great. He’s wearing the leathers, which actually is great, because she has eyes and she’s not dead.  
She hasn’t told him about Slade yet, due to a mix of cowardice and still not being sure if she can trust the man who was once their enemy. “Uh, hey. I have a door.”

 _Damnit_. Slade will be here in a few minutes so she needs to get Oliver out and fast. He steps into her apartment looking all intense, as usual. Even finding his soulmate again didn’t relax him. 

“I’m just here to warn you,” he says without preamble. She makes a go ahead gesture and waits. “Slade hasn’t been bothering us lately, and members of the League have been seen around Starling. I’m worried something big is about to go down.” 

“You came all the way here just to tell me that?” she says instead of panicking because a worried Oliver is an Oliver who asks a lot of questions and finds out that her soulmate is Slade freaking Wilson. 

“Yes. My phone’s dead.” 

“Uh huh. Okay. Do you want me to get on him?” She can _feel_ the flush spread along her skin. “I mean, not _on_ him, on him. I in no way want to be on top of, uh, Slade. Ever. I meant that I’ll find out what I can.” Oliver gives her a weird look and one of his quick smiles before he slips away.

 

Slade shows up minutes later, frowning. She frowns in return when he sniffs the air. “Uh…hi,” she says slowly, moving aside as he takes a step forward. 

“Queen was here.”

“Yeah...How’d you know?”

He glances around, distracted, and brushes his nose. “Mirukaru enhanced my senses.” 

“Oh. Um. He just came by to say hello, and talk about work.”

“Yeah?” His face clears and he finally seems to notice that she’s wearing a tee and not much else. “I like the outfit.”

She tugs the hem down and walks over to him. “Yeah, I didn’t have any time to change.” 

“You look good.”

“Why do you hate Oliver?” she blurts out, then bites her lip. “I mean…ugh. I’m sorry. I can’t do casual.” 

He shrugs and sits, patting the spot next to him. “S’alright. You’re blunt, ask the hard questions. That’s good.”

“Are you going to tell me?”

“Of course.”

 

She’s all nervous now, and he hates that. Fear smells awful, sharp and bitter. He prefers her warm vanilla scent of contentment. He puts a hand on her thigh and squeezes. 

“Queen probably hasn’t told you any of this, but on the island, there was a woman named Shado. I loved her. She loved Oliver. But, as you know, Sara Lance is his soulmate. I knew Shado wasn’t mine, but I always knew there was a good chance I might kill my soulmate, due to the tone of my words, and she was…” 

He rubs a hand over his jaw and sighs. She nudges his side, frowning. “Hey. If it’s too hard, you don’t have to say anything.”

“No. I’m fine. Like I said, I loved her. I didn’t know the Lance girl was Queen’s soulmate, so when I learned he chose her over Shado, I went beserk.” 

“Then you came to Starling, tried to kill all of us, and…eventually figured out why he picked Sara?” 

“Yes.” He curls a hand around the back of her neck, feeling the pulse, already so grateful that she’s his. 

“Why didn’t you stop then? I mean, you backed off a lot, but you still attacked us sometimes, which was _awful_ , by the way.” 

“Revenge is powerful, Felicity. Once I started, I couldn’t stop.” 

“Alright. Well, that’s enough painful past talk for a while, I think. You want oatmeal?” He raises an eyebrow and she grins, eyes sparkling. God, she’s lovely. “It’s got these little eggs in them, and they turn into dinosaurs as you eat, they’re the greatest. I buy them in bulk.” 

He laughs and pulls her close to kiss her temple. “Yes, dinosaur oatmeal sounds good.” 

 

Slade eats with single minded focus. Oliver is the same way. Eats staring straight ahead until she coughs out an “Oliver!” or forces his attention to her. Actually, now that she thinks of it, Sara’s like that, too. God, she’s surrounded herself with damaged people.

“Slade.” 

He glances up, spoon halfway to his mouth. “Mm?” 

“You’re doing the mechanical eating thing. This is _dinosaur oatmeal_. Enjoy it.” He nods and slows down. “What do you want to do today?” 

“Haven’t seen much of the city.” 

“Kay, I’ll show you the good stuff,” she says around a mouthful of tiny, _awesome_ , edible dinosaurs.

“Sounds great.”


	6. Carousel

“So…do you only wear suits and armor?” she asks as she stands, tugging at the hem of her shirt. 

 

“No. Sometimes I’m naked.” He wonders how far down her blush goes. 

“Uh…uh….uh…” she stammers and he slips a hand up the back of thigh, the skin smooth and pliant. He wonders how long it would take to seduce her, stay in bed all day with his head between her thighs. He sighs and pulls his hand away, stroking the back of her knee. 

“Go get changed.” She lets out a long breath and steps into her room. When she comes out she looks the same as usual, bright lipstick and short skirt. Lovely. Always so lovely. “Where are we going first?”

“There’s this Lebanese restaurant on Seventh, Sayeed’s. Best kibbe I’ve ever had.” 

“We just ate, Felicity.”

 

She gives him a small smile and shrugs. “I’m a bottomless pit, and athletic people like you are always hungry.”

“You know this from experience?” he asks as they enter the elevator not far from her door. 

“Well, Oliver’s still, uh, all traumatized, so he tends to starve unless we remind him to eat. But Sara, Digg, and Roy basically never stop eating.” 

He grins as the doors open and they step out, Felicity taking his hand in hers without comment. “I’m full for now, but later?” 

“Of course. For now, come to the Carousel with me?” 

“How old are you, again?” he teases, pulling her close to his side.

“Twenty six, and I’m young at heart,” she replies. 

“I’ll watch. I don’t ride fake horses.” She giggles and briefly presses her face to his shoulder.

 

He watches her. Always. She’s used to being watched, though. She’ll fall asleep in the Cave and wake up to Oliver’s eyes on her as he sharpens arrowheads. She’ll look up from her burger to find Sara watching her, something wistful in her face. So she doesn’t mind the staring.

“Slade, come on,” she calls, waving from atop a black horse. He sits on a bench, arms spread over the back. He takes up as much space as possible, she’s noticed. Every time the carousel cycles she can see him smiling at her. He shakes his head anyway, but when the ride ends he helps her off, his hands firm at her waist. “That was fun! You’ll join me when we come back, right?”

His face is thoughtful. “You would like to come back?” 

She hooks her arm through his and leads him through the crowd. “Of course! Before we really get started, is there _anywhere_ you like?” 

“I’ve spent most of my time here murdering people, Felicity. I didn’t really notice the scenery.” She grimaces and pulls him to a stop, though she knows she couldn’t do that if he didn’t let her. 

“Look, I know this is cliché and just, super typical, but you’ve _changed_ , Slade. You’d changed even before you found me. You hadn’t tried to kill any of us in months.”

He nods quickly as they exit the park. “There was one place. A building. Quiet. Good view of the harbor.” 

“Is it close by?”

“Close enough. We can go there and be at that Lebanese place by six. Good enough?” 

“Always,” she says, knowing he understands her meaning.

 

The building is one of the many warehouses that fill Starling City. He’s aware that it doesn’t look like much. He used it as a base several times, taking cruel pleasure in the fact that it used to be part of Queen Consolidated. Now, it’s just cobwebbed and dusty, with a single, bloodstained cot shoved into one corner. 

“That’s blood. I know that’s blood. Why is that blood?” Felicity asks as they walk by it, her hand tightening around his.

“I was foolish.”

“That’s…really not enough of an explanation,” she tells him, pausing in front of the stairs that lead to the roof. 

“I fell off a roof during a routine patrol and impaled myself upon a spiked fence. The wound was clean and healed quickly.” Her eyes are round and shocked. He had stumbled back to base with his guts spilling between his hands, staining everything he touched with blood. There had been no one to help him, and he spent two days in agony with Shado’s ghost berating him for his idiocy.  
But the real Shado would have just sighed and fixed him, and it was then that his mind began to heal. When the madness that the serum caused began to fade. 

“Oh my God. Oh my God,” Felicity hisses, moving quickly to grasp the bottom of his shirt.

“Wha-” he manages to get out before she’s tugging his shirt up, running her hands along his stomach. “What are you doing?”

“Checking to make sure there’s not a scar, I guess, I don’t even know why because your crazy serum abilities would’ve healed it, healed a wound you got from _impaling_ yourself because clearly my life is insane. I _knew_ getting involved with Oliver would fuck everything up but God. I guess…” 

He ignores the feel of her hands against his skin and takes her by the shoulders. “Felicity.” Her hands freeze and she looks up at him. “I’m alright. I will always be alright.”

She nods quickly and takes her hands away. “I get overwhelmed sometimes, you know? My brain just goes tick tock tick tock and everything happens at once.” 

“That’s understandable.” He leads her up the stairs and to the roof. 

 

The harbor is spread before them. “Oh, it’s beautiful!” she exclaims, rushing to the edge.

“Not as beautiful as you.” She turns to him, glowing, the wind whipping her hair back.

“You’re so cheesy, Slade.” She’s grinning, though. He shrugs and moves to sit by her feet, leaning his head against her leg. She scratches at the top of his head, smooths his hair back. “What would you come up here for?” 

“To think, mostly.”

“You like the ocean?”

“I spent a lot of time on it, as a kid.” He tugs on her skirt so she sits between his legs, back to his chest. He wraps his arms around her, fingers meeting over the softness of her stomach. They sit like that for an hour, speaking softly back and forth about nothing at all, really. 

 

Watching her eat is…nice. She takes forever, closing her eyes at each bite. It’s been a while since he didn’t just wolf down a meal, seeking sustenance. This morning and now, really, are the only recent times he’s enjoyed what he ate. The kibbe is amazing, the best he’s had since Beirut. They eat in silence for a while, watching cars pass by through the window.

“How are we gonna tell Oliver?” 

“I’ll do it. Don’t want him putting an arrow in you.” 

Her eyes narrow. “Oliver would never put an arrow in me!”

“I know, love.”

 

He kisses her goodbye at the door to her apartment. “You want to come in?” she asks, cause it’s only eight and she still has a few free days left. He smiles and brushes past her, hands briefly on her hips. “I have a lot of work to do, but I can put on a movie for you.”

“Sounds good.” They sit for an hour or so while she types, feet tucked under his thighs, before he pulls her onto his lap and bites at her neck. He kisses her until she’s making sleepy noises, mouth slack against his. “Go to sleep, love.”

“You’ll be here in mornin’?” she slurs, taking her glasses off as she rests her head against his thigh. 

“Always.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I actually started watching Arrow, and wow am I way off with canon. So consider this story the "what if they had soulmarks and also happiness was possible" AU


	7. Finale

She wakes up for no reason at three, blinks at the ceiling til awareness comes. Slade is in her bed, one arm around her hips. He must’ve carried her here. His face is pressed to her stomach, mouth slightly open. She’s never seen him relaxed before. He trusts her. So she decides to trust him. She carefully puts a hand on his back, feeling the in and out of his breath. She falls back to sleep with a contented sigh.   
She wakes up again to the smell of waffles and decides that Slade Wilson is _perfect_.  
__________________________

“So, hypothetically, if I found my soulmate, how would you guys…feel?” she asks Diggle while they’re alone in the Cave. 

He steeples his fingers and rests his chin on them. “That would be great, Felicity.”

“Okay, yeah, but, still hypothetically, what if my soulmate is Slade Wilson?” Digg sighs long and loud. “I mean….” 

“Just. Don’t talk for a sec,” he interrupts, putting his head in his hands. She waits a full minute before opening her mouth again. 

“So….” 

“Oliver’s going to put an arrow in you.”

“Ugh, why is everyone _saying_ that?”

He raises an eyebrow. “How many people have you told?” 

“Well, I told you first, cause you’re the calmest. I’m working up to Roy, Thea, and Sara.” He pinches the bridge of his nose. “Look, trust me. Not Slade. It’s _me_ , Digg.”

“Alright.” 

She glances at him. “Really? It’s that easy?” 

“Yeah. I know you. You’re not stupid.”

She breathes a long sigh of relief and touches his shoulder. “You’re the best, Digg.” 

“I know.” 

_________________________________  
Felicity waits for Sara to put down any visible weapons before she speaks to her. “So, Slade’s my soulmate,” she blurts out, feeling nervous and sweaty cause this is _Sara_ , and if Sara feels like her relationship is a problem, then everything is fucked. Everyone knows that Sara’s the real leader of this team.   
Sara flips the hair out of her eyes and gives Felicity a level gaze. Felicity waits, doing her best not to fidget or babble. “I know.” 

“You know. You know? _How?_ ”

Now Sara looks nervous, sits with her long legs folded. “I always wanted a little sister.” 

“Okay.” She can see where this is going. She thinks. 

“First there was Sin, and now you. Two little sisters. Two people to watch over. There’s Thea, too, but Laurel’s her soulmate, and, well…” She wrinkles her nose. “I don’t want to see Laurel having sex with _anyone_ , especially Thea.”

Felicity grins at her. “So, cause you watch me…” 

“I found out about Slade really early. Don’t worry. I won’t let Ollie put an arrow in you.”

“ _God_. Oliver’s not gonna put an arrow in me!” Sara just laughs and stands, patting her on the hip as she walks by.

 

______________________________  
Felicity catches Thea while she’s putting boxes away. “Uh, hey, Thea.” Jesus, she’s beautiful. Even objectively. The Queen family must drink some sort of awesome gene’s potion, cause _God_. 

“Oh, hi, Felicity,” she says distractedly, checking numbers off on a clipboard. 

“Slade Wilson is my soulmate and he’s good now.”

“That’s nice.” Thea glances up and gives her a tight smile, tapping her pen. “Have you seen Laurel? Could you tell her I want her to come here?” 

“Uh, sure.”

“Thanks!” Thea says brightly, so Felicity leaves to look for Laurel. 

 

_________________________________________________  
Roy and Sin are harder to find. They’re the weird kind of soulmates who are always at each other’s side and no one can tell if they’re platonic or not. 

“Slade’s my soulmate.”

They glance at each other and nod. “Sara already told us.” “Roy already had his inevitable freakout.” “It wasn’t that bad.” “Tell that to my apartment. My poor lamp will never be the same again.”   
They’re smiling. Sin fiddles with the new piercing through her bottom lip. “Hey, does this look swollen to you?” 

Roy turns to her, moving in close. “Hm…” He takes her chin in one hand, gentle. Just when Felicity thinks they’re going to kiss, and she’s going to win the betting pool, he pulls back. “Nah. You’re fine.” 

They look up at Felicity like they’re wondering why she’s still there, so she leaves.

 

________________________________________  
Oliver doesn’t put an arrow in her. He puts one in Slade. Slade grunts and pulls it out, wound already healing. “S’not nice to shoot friend’s soulmates, Queen.” 

“If this is a trick, if you _hurt_ her, I’m killing you, Slade.”

“I wouldn’t go that low,” he says defensively.

“You almost killed my mother!” 

“She’s alive.” 

“You kidnapped Thea!” 

“Also still alive,” Felicity interjects, peeking out from behind Sara. Oliver gives her a look, desperate and confused. “My choice, Oliver. My choice to trust him. My choice to tell you.” 

“My choice to leave.” Oliver turns and stalks off, followed by Sara. 

“He’ll get over it,” Digg says, clapping a hand on her shoulder.

“Wait, your soulmate is Slade?” Thea says, coming up behind them. Roy and Sin take her by the elbows and lead her away. 

“This is why-” “-you need to pay more attention, Thea.”

Slade is flexing his fingers, the mark on his shoulder fading to pink. “I told you not to tell him in the Cave. Too much access to weapons.” 

“I’m really sorry.”

“I’ve had worse.” He grins, tugging her in by the waist. “Why don’t you kiss it better?”

“You are literally the lamest person ever.” She kisses him anyway.

 

With his mouth on hers, Slade barely notices the pain in his shoulder.  
END


End file.
